Transportation, Costs and Fundraising

Each school determines the cost to students of the week at Outdoor Education and arranges for transportation to and from the site.

Raising Funds to Participate in the Outdoor Education Program

Teachers may decide to raise money as a school or class to offset or eliminate the attendance costs for families. Students participating in tuition fundraising often feel a unique ownership of their week at Outdoor Education and a sense of pride for their school or class accomplishment.

What follows is a brief outline of fundraising notes and considerations.

1.	Successful fundraising requires the establishment of a parent or teacher-led group for the definition of tasks and assignment of responsibilities.
2.	Communication with all involved parties (parents, students, teachers, and administration) ensures support and goodwill.
3.	Clear declaration of goals can determine the fundraising approach. (Perhaps the goal is to mitigate costs to all students. Perhaps the goal is to award scholarships to students to attend which would otherwise be impossible).
4.	Composition of a mission statement explains the needs and benefits of the group to potential donors. The mission statement may take the form of a simple sentence such as "Our fifth grade class hopes to attend San Mateo Outdoor Education this school year. We believe that participation in such a program will allow our students to apply classroom knowledge in natural setting, foster a love of wild places and encourage positive memories with classmates in a living and learning community. " Alternatively, a mission statement might include a story about a student who made behavioral and / or academic improvement as a result of the Outdoor Education experience.
5.	Appointment of a person to process the handling of donations helps with determination of progress.
6.	Grants, individual donations, and events are favored means of fundraising. Groups often evaluate their own capabilities and select an approach that suits their strengths.
7.	Expression of gratitude and thanks to donors, volunteers, and team members is essential.
8.	Retention of records of activities and results can assist future groups with their fundraising efforts.

Grant Sources

1.	The Teachers Fund, administered by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation offers Small Grants (under $1,500), Collaborative Grants (up to $5,000), and Professional Development Grants (up to $5,000) for projects in public elementary schools. The Foundation also offers workshops on grant writing.
2.	The Silicon Valley Community Foundation is open to the public and runs a useful library.
	2440 West El Camino Real, Suite 300 Mountain View, California 94040-1498 Phone: 650.450.5400
3.	A few suggested resources for finding funds for school educational programs:
	• Federal Register Grant Index • The National Guide to Funding for Children, Youth, and Families • The National Guide to Funding for Elementary and Secondary Education

Fundraising

The library and internet has information on fundraising procedures and ideas:
1.	Good Cents: Every Kid's Guide to Making Money, The Amazing Life Games Co., Houghton Mifflin Co., 1974. This book offers a variety of crafts and events ideas.
2.	101 Ways to Raise Resources, Sue Vineyard and Steve McCurley, Heritage Arts Publishing, IL, 1987. This book includes general fundraising advice, ideas for special events and publicity, how to solicit individuals, corporations and foundations, and how to utilize volunteers.
3.	500 Ways for Small Charities to Raise Money, Phillip T. Drotning, Public Service Material Center, 1979. This book provides information on how to choose and organize an event for success.
4.	Keys to Successful Fund Raising for Outdoor School, San Diego County Office of Education. This is a useful guide about schools raising money for Outdoor Education.

When choosing a fundraiser consider:

1.	The overall costs and profit
2.	The number of hours involved
3.	The reliability of candidate companies
4.	Avoiding competition with other groups
5.	The needs of the community (door-to-door versus one time event)

Fundraising Ideas:

1.	Sell Environmentally-Friendly Products: Students learn ways they can help the environment. For example:
	Sell t-shirts. The Jim Morris Environmental T-Shirts® catalogue offers beautiful shirts with environmental messages. They donate over 10% of their profits to environmental groups.
	P.O. Box 18270 Boulder, CO 80308-1270 1-800-788-5411
	Sell trees. Contact a local nursery to donate or sell trees to your school at reduced cost. After selling the trees, offer to deliver and plant them for an additional fee.
	Sell reusable string or canvas shopping bags.
	Sell unbreakable, reusable thermal coffee mugs. Have students design an environmental picture or message to print on the mugs.
	Sell recycled paper items.
2.	Start a recycling program at school and use the funds for sending students to Outdoor Education every year. This can give students a hands-on opportunity to reduce waste. Try to include all types of paper. One middle school in Virginia collected 125,000 cans in two days and made over $2000 (Recycler's Handbook).
	Collection Ideas:
	•	Put bins on school grounds for recycled items.
	•	Send notices to parents and other community members to bring their cans and bottles to school on specific days for recycling.
	•	Recruit volunteers to transport recyclable items to a recycling center or see if a recycle center will pick up large quantities.
	For information on starting a recycling program contact: County of San Mateo RecycleWorks 555 County Center, 5th Floor Redwood City, CA 94063 RecycleWorks Hotline: 1-888-442-2666 Email: info@recycleworks.org
3.	Sponsor an "a-thon". Pledges are made for each unit of time or distance accomplished.
	Walk-A-Thon: Students get sponsors to pledge money for every piece of litter picked up or every minute worked. Hold a Clean-a-thon at the beach, in a park, along a stream bank, or any other local areas. Students will have the opportunity to contribute to the community while raising funds.
	Clean-a-thon: Students get sponsors to pledge money for every piece of litter picked up or every minute worked. Hold a Clean-a-thon at the beach, in a park, along a stream bank, or any other local area. Students will have the opportunity to contribute to the community while raising funds.
	Spell-a-thon: Students collect sponsors to pledge money for every Outdoor Education vocabulary word they spell correctly. Students will have the opportunity to learn while raising funds.
4.	Turn local businesses into art galleries. In exchange for a donation, use students' art to decorate offices.
5.	Make crafts from "junk" as a class art project, then sell them at a crafts fair or parent night. Another idea is to make and sell bird feeders and include drawings and natural history cards about the birds that might eat from the feeders.
6.	Wash cars and provide a flyer on how to make a car more fuel-efficient.
7.	Have a bake sale or sell popsicles or pizza.
8.	Partner with a grocery store to sell grocery scrips.
9.	Approach Service Clubs for scholarships (Kiwanis, Rotary, etc.).
10.	Organize a school carnival, book fair, or talent show.

Legal Aspects:

Lotteries and raffles are illegal unless tickets are for a donation or are free. School districts are not authorized to conduct bingo games. Check with your school or school district office for a fundraising policy prior to planning a fundraiser.